Schmidt Spiele

Schmidt Spiele GmbH
Company typeGmbH
Founded1907
Headquarters
Berlin, Germany
Key people
Axel Kaldenhoven
Martina Priemer
Productsfamily and social games, puzzles, toys, soft toys
Websitewww.schmidtspiele.de

Schmidt Spiele GmbH is a German board game publisher based in Berlin. Founded in Munich, the company develops and distributes board games, card games, puzzles, plush and wooden toys for various target groups. With well-known classics such as Mensch ärgere Dich nicht®, Kniffel®, and DOG®, as well as award-winning games like Auf Achse and Qwirkle™, Schmidt Spiele is one of the most traditional providers in the German boardgame industry. The publisher has been part of Good Time Holding since 1997 and regularly participates in major national and international game fairs. In addition to classic products, Schmidt Spiele also offers digital game versions and is committed to sustainability and social engagement.

History

Historical Development

The origins of Schmidt Spiele date back to 1907, when the lithographer Josef Friedrich Schmidt founded the company Schmidt & Söhne in Munich. In the early years, the publisher specialized in the production and distribution of board games.

The company’s greatest success came in 1914 with the release of Mensch ärgere Dich nicht®, which was developed by Josef Friedrich Schmidt in a small workshop in the Giesing district of Munich. The dice game quickly became a bestseller and evolved over generations into a classic of German gaming culture.

In the following decades, the publisher continuously expanded its range and established itself as one of the leading providers of board games in the German-speaking world. In 1984, Schmidt Spiele, in collaboration with Droemer Knaur, published the first commercially successful pen-and-paper role-playing game in Germany, Das Schwarze Auge.

Other successful titles of the company include Kniffel®, Auf Achse, DOG®, The Quacks of Quedlinburg, as well as numerous board and card games for children, families, and frequent players.

In 1997, Schmidt Spiele fell into a difficult situation and had to file for insolvency. In August 1997, the headquarters in Eching near Munich was closed, and the main production facility in Ingolstadt was taken over by the Lower Franconian Ludwig Scheer GmbH.

The rest of the company, particularly the brand Schmidt Spiele as well as the rights to most games, was acquired by the Berlin-based Blatz Group, which today operates as Good Time Holding GmbH. It also includes sister companies such as KIDDINX Media and KIDDINX Studios. Under the new ownership, the significantly better-known name Schmidt Spiele was retained. In addition to traditional game production, the company is now one of the leading providers of puzzles in Europe and distributes licensed products featuring designs from Disney, Universal, and Thomas Kinkade.

In 2008, Schmidt Spiele GmbH acquired the rights to the premium brand Drei Magier, thereby ensuring the continuation of the popular children's game brand. Drei Magier stands for challenging children's games.

Since October 2017, Selecta® has been part of the brand world of Schmidt Spiele. For over 57 years, Selecta® has been manufacturing wooden toys with the highest quality standards.

In addition to its product range, the company regularly participates in international trade fairs, including SPIEL in Essen, the International Spielwarenmesse in Nuremberg, and the Berlin Brettspiel Con. These events showcase new releases and facilitate exchanges with industry professionals and board game enthusiasts.

Information: Mensch ärgere Dich nicht®
Name of the game Mensch ärgere Dich nicht®
Inventor Josef Friedrich Schmidt
Publication 1914
Significance One of the best-known and best-selling games in Germany
Special Part of the collection in the Haus der Geschichte, Bonn
Status Still an integral part of the Schmidt Spiele range today

Product areas

Products

Schmidt Spiele has established itself over the decades as a publisher of high-quality board games, card games, puzzles, plush products, and wooden toys. The company offers a wide range of products for different age groups and types of players, and collaborates with numerous licensors. Among the licensing partners are KIDDINX, Disney, Universal, and WDR.

Board and Card Games

The range includes classic board games such as Mensch ärgere Dich nicht®, Kniffel®, DOG® or Auf Achse, as well as family games and titles for experienced gaming groups. Many of these games have won multiple awards and are considered classics of the German games market. Furthermore, Schmidt Spiele has recognized the digitization of the games market for several years and now offers selected titles as apps. For example, a Mensch ärgere Dich nicht® app was released in 2024, while Kniffel® has been available as a mobile version since 2011.

Children's Games

In the field of children's games, Schmidt Spiele offers a diverse range of titles that are specifically tailored to the needs and abilities of younger players. In addition to the publisher's own children's games, the Drei Magier brand has also been part of the portfolio since 2008. Originally founded in 1994, Drei Magier stands for sophisticated children's games with so-called "magical moments" created through special game mechanics. The games immerse children in imaginative adventure worlds, presented by the three characters Vicky, Conrad, and Mila. Particularly successful are Spooky Stairs (2004), The Magic Labyrinth (2009), and The Enchanted Tower (2013), which were awarded the Children's Game of the Year. The range also includes card games like Dodelido, Cockroach Salad, and Cheating Moth, which require quick reflexes and skill.

Puzzles

Schmidt Spiele is one of the leading providers of puzzles in Europe. The products are characterized by a so-called '6-star quality', which includes a wide variety of shapes, precise cut-outs, specially developed cardboard, and high-quality printing processes. The motifs are a mix of landscape, animal, and licensed designs. The puzzles by the American artist Thomas Kinkade, who passed away in 2012, are particularly successful and often appear in combination with Disney motifs, making them popular among collectors.

In 2025, Schmidt Spiele introduced a sustainable puzzle board under the NATPAX® brand, which consists of 60 percent recycled paper and 40 percent grass fibers.

Plush Products

In addition to games and puzzles, Schmidt Spiele also develops and sells plush figures. Particularly well-known are the Sorgenfresser®, soft fabric figures that provide children with a playful way to symbolically process fears and worries. Moreover, plush products from world-renowned brands like Gabby’s Dollhouse, Dragons, and Jurassic World are part of the assortment.

Selecta® Wooden Toys

The Schmidt Spiele GmbH also owns the brand Selecta®, which has stood for high-quality wooden toys for over 57 years. The products are educationally oriented and promote motor, creative, and cognitive skills in toddlers and children. They are made from the natural material wood, with an emphasis on health safety, durability, and regular TÜV inspections. The range includes classic grasping and pushing toys as well as educational games that help children learn shapes, colors, and numbers.

Sustainability

Since 2022, Schmidt Spiele has been recording the CO₂ footprint of all company locations and is implementing measures to reduce emissions in collaboration with ClimatePartner. The locations are supplied with green electricity and heated with renewable energies, and the fleet is gradually being converted to electric and hybrid vehicles.

The publisher also pursues sustainable approaches in product design. Packaging is increasingly sealed without shrink wrap, using paper-based adhesive dots instead. Materials mostly consist of recyclable components. At the International Toy Fair 2025, the company presented NATPAX®, a novel puzzle cardboard made of 60 percent waste paper and 40 percent grass.

Social Engagement

Schmidt Spiele regularly engages with social and charitable organizations, including the Berlin Food Bank, Die Arche, and BETHEL. Additionally, the publisher supports sports and game events in schools and social institutions.

Trade Show appearances and Events

The publisher regularly participates with its own trade show booths at the SPIEL consumer fair in Essen, the International Toy Fair in Nuremberg, and the Berlin Brettspiel Con. There, they present current innovations and maintain direct exchanges with the specialty trade, the press, and game enthusiasts.

In addition to these trade fair appearances, Schmidt Spiele organizes the Schmidt Puzzle Championship annually. This speed puzzle event takes place throughout the year in various locations and multiple federal states. Anyone aged five and above can participate, and there is no entry fee. The puzzles to be solved remain a secret until the day of the event. All participants start simultaneously with a 60-piece puzzle. The goal of the simultaneous action is to complete the puzzle as quickly as possible. The events are organized by local partners on site and also serve to promote the puzzle range of Schmidt Spiele.

For the cultural games Mensch ärgere Dich nicht® and Kniffel®, championships and tournaments are held regularly. In several federal states, state championships are organized, and there is also an official world championship for Mensch ärgere Dich nicht® in tournament mode.

Cooperations

Schmidt Spiele also maintains collaborations with various tourism partners in Germany. Among the partner regions are the Saxon Switzerland Tourism Association, the Sankt Peter-Ording Tourism Center, Büsum, the Butjadingen Tourism Service, as well as the North Sea spa Cuxhaven. As part of these partnerships, joint actions, special editions, and events related to the theme of games are offered, which bring the products of Schmidt Spiele closer to both locals and holiday guests.

Awards & Prizes

Since the founding of the Spiel des Jahres jury in 1978, Schmidt Spiele has earned numerous awards and accolades. This includes classic board games like Qwirkle or Auf Achse, expert games like The Quacks of Quedlinburg, as well as children's games. The publisher has impressed not only the German Spiel des Jahres jury but has also received many awards at the German Games Award and the Austrian Games Award.

In addition to the numerous excellent games, the publisher itself has also been able to win several industry awards. Among other things, Schmidt Spiele won the Print & Media Awards in 2024 together with the producer Friedmann Print Data Solutions GmbH for the innovative online printing associated with the newly released personalized Mensch ärgere Dich nicht in 2024.

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